KZSM–Staying cool with your true community radio station

We at KZSM.org look out on our sunbaked downtown from our newly remodeled and mercifully air-conditioned storefront studio. Among the many broadcasts that make up our 24/7 programming are some that just might cool your mood despite the temperature.

Wednesdays 2-4 p.m. you can enjoy “Carlos’ Groove Box.” The Groove Box is an M-707 synthesizer that allows host Carlos Cedillo to play several channels of music at once, creating musical fantasies that take listeners into another dimension.

As Carlos describes it, “listeners are invited into the flow, living in the moment and connecting into a group emotional state.” His sitar, 5-string bass, and classical guitar alternate with the synthesizer to create serene musical escapes.

For another variety of cool contemplation, join host Mark Decker for “Melancholy Tea Party,” at 6 p.m. Monday, 9 a.m. Tuesday, or 8 p.m. Thursday. In planning his music show, Mark “came across a series of songs that were slower tempo in nature, with many in a minor key, and the lyrics largely represented broken or hampered relationships.”

His playlists “group songs with lyrics that create a storyline of sorts,” engaging listeners’ emotions and imaginations to create sharing rather than sadness. The 2 songs will “allow people to understand that whatever hardship they might be going through, they are certainly in good company.”

In addition to escapes into an inner landscape, we provide musical journeys to cooler climes! Saturdays from noon to 2 p.m., Jeanne Randall (“Limey’s Lass”) hosts “Celtic Corner,” featuring music that celebrates the people and the culture of Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and some other areas such as Brittany.

The reels, fiddle tunes, and ballads she plays will transport you to green fields or to a cool pub as voices harmonize and raise a parting glass.

If you prefer facing up to the meteorological realities of our region, escaping no farther than our beloved San Marcos River, tune into KZSM.org at 11:30 a.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month for “Wonderful World,” hosted by Dianne Wassenich of the San Marcos River Foundation.

She will introduce you to some of the activists, experts, and volunteers who carry out the River Foundation’s mission. “I hope our listeners will learn something wonderful and new ... that affects their very own environment,” she says.

However you cope with the heat, we’re here to help you do it 24/7!